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...In Jane Austen’s book “NorthangerAbbey”, one of the major themes and objectives within the novel is the nature and attitude of the society towards different genres of reading and literature. This essay will examine this theme according to the novel as a whole, the passage given and the devices with which Austen distinguishes her views on literature, as well as the views she has on characters which revolve around the theme of reading and literature. The essay will also examine the context behind the novel in terms of the status of reading and literature in that period of history in England and how this theme of reading and literature reflects on Austen’s broader theme within the novel.
The attitude of Austen towards reading and writing can be seen throughout the novel, as she mostly satires the common traits of gothic novels (Flavin, 2004). Austen’s satirising of gothic novels is indicated to the reader in the first pages of the novel where Austen decisively describes the character of Catherine by making reference to the fact that Catherine’s character does not resemble that of a heroine in a gothic novel. An example of this type of reference can be seen in the first line of the novel where Austen states “no one who had ever seen Catherine Morland in her fancy, would have supposed her born to be a heroine” (Austen, 1983:pp1005.) The novel also includes a theme of ongoing mockery of gothic novel conventions as Austen describes Catherine’s family...

...Oppositions are a feature of Gothic texts. How does Austen use this in the first five chapters of ‘NorthangerAbbey’.
In Jane Austen’s novel, ‘NorthangerAbbey’ [NA], oppositions feature strongly as a method which the author uses often to parody the public’s expectation of what a gothic should consist of, and as a method of highlighting the ridiculous expectations novels can create for people in the real world. Frequently throughout the novel, Miss Austen even breaks the fourth wall of writing to comment on how unlike a traditional gothic novel certain aspects of NA are, such as Catherine’s trip to Bath as well as Catherine’s general upbringing and childhood. Introducing Catherine as the average and understated young woman who is to be the main character, or at the very least the one around whom the narrative revolves, the reader’s expectations of a heroine are instantly challenged, Austen even tells the reader that Catherine preferred more male dominated activities like cricket to “the more heroic enjoyments.” By creating this challenge for the reader, Austen not only allows he novel to stand out from other Gothic novels, which were extremely prevalent at the time but she also gives the reader a narrative hook, forcing them to question, ‘why is Catherine the main character is she is so normal?’.
An alternative interpretation might be to say that by creating an ordinary person in Catherine, Austen...

...﻿NorthangerAbbey by Jane Austin
Key facts:
full title:
NorthangerAbbey
author:
Jane Austen
type of work:
Novel
genre:
'Bildungsroman'(novel of education or moral development); parody of Gothic novels
language:
English (British, late 1700s/early 1800s)
time and place written:
1798–1799 in Austen's home in Steventon, Hampshire. It was sold to a publisher in 1803 but not published. Later, after Austen's success with other novels, she bought back the manuscript and revised it slightly. 'NorthangerAbbey' was published posthumously in 1817.
date of first publication:
1817
publisher:
John Murray, Albemarle Street
narrator:
Third person omniscient; free indirect discourse
point of view:
The narrator varies greatly. Sometimes the narrator is contented to simply describe events normally; sometimes the narrator addresses the reader directly; and sometimes (especially in the second half of the novel) Austen uses the technique of free indirect discourse, in which she describes people and events from a 3rd-person perspective, but in the way that a particular character (in this case, Catherine) sees and understands them.
Tone:
Light, ironic, satirical; gently fond when talking about Catherine
tense:
Immediate past
setting (time):
January–April 1798.
setting (place):
The first half of the novel takes place primarily in Bath, England, which was a big resort town for the...

...NorthangerAbbey
In the novel NorthangerAbbey, Jane Austen uses character development to portray the theme of being separated from loved ones. The main character, Catherine Morland, is influenced by people, events, and decisions which cause her to change over time during her quest for heroism due to loneliness and rejection from being separated from the ones that she loves. Austen meant Catherine to be "simple-minded, insentimental, and commonplace unsolicitated falls in love with a man who snubs and educates her, not adores her" (Forster 51). These assets which make her so basic are the attributes which she develops from.
"Catherine couldn't be aware from the outset because the story developed precisely from Catherine's unawareness of distinctions" (Marvin 73). She had spent her entire life with her family, never knowing the concept of loneliness. She is only seventeen during the three months that the book takes place. Her mind was "about as ignorant and uninformed as the female mind at seventeen usually is" (Austen 5). This character trait of Catherine is a lot like Jane Austen, whose life was private, uneventful, extraordinarily narrow and restricted. (Southam 107). Catherine knew that if adventures did not befal her in her own village, she had to seek them abroad. So she traveled to Bath upon invitation, and was separated from her beloved family for the first time (Austen 5). Austen's life was very similar....

...Jane Austen’s NorthangerAbbey is frequently described as a novel about reading—reading novels and reading people—while Pride and Prejudice is said to be a story about love, about two people overcoming their own pride and prejudices to realize their feelings for each other. If Pride and Prejudice is indeed about how two stubborn youth have misjudged each other, then why is it that this novel is so infrequently viewed to be connected to Austen’s original novel about misjudgment and reading one’s fellows, NorthangerAbbey? As one of Austen’s first novels, NorthangerAbbey is often viewed as a “prototype” to her later novels, but it is most often compared to Persuasion (Brown 50). However, if read discerningly, one can see in Pride and Prejudice many echoes of situations and events first presented in NorthangerAbbey.
From the very onset of each book, the reader will notice a similarity: Austen’s penchant for interesting and entertaining first lines. NorthangerAbbey begins with the words, “No one who had ever seen Catherine Morland in her infancy would have supposed her born to be an heroine” (Northanger 5). By saying that nobody would have supposed Catherine to be a heroine, Austen is suggesting to the reader that a heroine is indeed what Catherine will become. This line also presents the first bit of the irony that...

...Evil Villains in NorthangerAbbey
In Jane Austen's, NorthangerAbbey, John Thorpe and General Tilney are portrayed as unpleasant villains. Villains are defined as, "a wicked or evil person; a scoundrel" (The American Heritage Dictionary http://www.dictionary.com/search?q=VILLAIN). Austen description of both men as power-hungry, easily upset, and manipulative follows this definition. She introduces both characters in separate parts of the book, however simultaneously she delivers a stunning example of their identical villainous personalities. Through the portrayal of John Thorpe and General Tilney as villains, Austen comments on the male supremacy that permeates through her time.
In the first half of the novel, John Thorpe stands out as the villain of the novel. He is introduced as a, "stout young man of middling height, who, with a plain face and ungraceful form, seemed fearful of being too handsome unless he wore the dress of a groom, and to much like a gentleman unless he were easy where he ought to be civil, and imprudent where he might be allowed to be easy" (Austen 25). Following the initial description, John is introduced to Catherine. Rather than engaging in personable dialogue, he brags about the quality and speed of his horses, his authority on ascertaining distances, and his proficiency in leading his horses. Immediately, the reader is struck with the similarity of John to an immature...

...“Explore the theme of Transformations in “NorthangerAbbey”
In “NorthangerAbbey” Austen crafts from start to finish a perfect paradigm of her own satirical wit and burlesqued humour, which go to all lengths imaginable to disguise and embed her novel’s transformations. These demonstrate her great skill as a satirist in making the reader dig for their own enjoyment. Her meaning is drenched in multiple interpretations causing even complete opposites like the transformed and unchanged to blur together, leaving as Fuller says, “The joke on everyone except Austen”; whose sophisticated “meta-parody” carries on transforming and confusing the reader (Fuller, Miriam 2010). Craik first contrived how to delve into Austen’s satire, and that was by realising that “The literary burlesque is not incidental, nor integral” (Craik, W A 1965). In my essay I am therefore going to delve deeply into the satirical, and reveal the true transformations Austen intended to present.
The first line of the text identifies Catherine Morland as the novel’s central figure for transformation “No one who had ever seen Catherine Morland in her infancy would have supposed her born to be an heroine” (Austen, Jane “NorthangerAbbey” 2003 PP. 5). Austen then ironically, and ambiguously, decks her out to be a burlesqued parody of the heroic archetype, thus transforming the perspective of what constitutes a heroine....

...The Female Bildungsroman
Like other Jane Austen novels, such as Emma or Pride and Prejudice, Northanger Abbey's primary trajectory is the development of the main female character. Even though Catherine Morland is not a typical female Bildungsroman, her realizations in who she is and who she is becoming are very evident throughout the novel. Webster's Dictionary defines the Bildungsroman as "a novel which traces the spiritual, moral, psychological, or social development and growth of the main character towards maturity." In this novel, the main developments of Catherine being traced are the social, psychological, emotional, and intellectual, in addition to her growth as a fully functional lady of society. This paper will focus on Catherine Morland fitting the mold of the female Bildungsroman by way of how she learns, what she learns, and how she matures and grows wiser in the actions of people and society.
In Chapter I of the novel, Catherine is stereotyped as a person who "never could learn or understand anything before she was taught." This helps to paint a picture of Catherine being helpless and dependent for extended emphasis or exaggeration of the trials she must go through to reach maturity and independence. For if Catherine learns through the guidance and teaching of others, her gullibility in what she is taught is heightened, therefore she may be susceptible to believe everything that she hears or reads. She takes everyone and everything at...